The Opelousas courier., 1887-03-19
WAYS OF SMUGGLERS.
Risks and Discomforts OF
Evading the Law.
Ingenious Methods for Importing Dia'
monds Without Paying Duty.

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s'There are hundreds of thousands of
dollars worth of jewelry struggled into
this city every year." said a custom
house officer to a reporter for this paper
recently, "and the methods employed
to defraud the government are as various
as the ingenuity of the crooked human
mind can suggest. The value Of jewelry
can well be expressed by the Latin
phase, multum in parvo, and it does not
require much space to hide away $500
or $1,000 in that kind of goods where it
will be next to impossible for a govern
ment official to find it.
"Men used to import diamonds in
their hair until that method became so
we'll known that few attempt it now.
Those who make a regular business of
smuggling often have an accomplish
among the steerage passengers of the
vessel in which they come over, and
they sew jewels into the ragged cloth
ing of an immigrant whom no one would
suspect of carrying about such valuable
articles. One person not very long ago
had a number of diamonds concealed
under a porous plaster on his back. In
formation regarding him was sent from
one of the cities on the other side, but
he succeeded in eluding the officials and
brought his diamonds into the city. He
was closely watched, however, and he
had no sooner Invested himself of his
plaster than the officials pounced upon
him and seized his contraband wares.
The marks on his body where the dia-
monds had rested were quite plain.
"False bottoms to trunks and other
receptablcs are now out of date, though
that method was much employed years
ago. One man had diamonds fastened
under his armpits and he was exposed
by being injured by them when In Off
Ger took hold of his arm.
"Concealing jewelry in clothing is
rather risky. When a person is sus-
pected of attempting to smuggle he is so
thoroughly searched that anything con-
cealcd on his person is almost sure to be
found. The most popular methods now
are to conceal valuable articles in objects
wholly ASSOCIATED with the smuggler.
Diamonds have been imbedded in little
sticks of wood and either foated ashore
or carried in some less risky way. One
smuggler, some years ago, brought over
an English cart, on which he was quite
willing to pay duty, but not on the dia-
monds concealed in the feltoes under
the tires. One ingenious person once
constructed a kaleidoscope which he
filed with broken bits of glass, dia-
monds, sapphires and other precious
stones. He was discovered because he
was a little too anxious to exhibit it and
to pay duty or it.
MANY Italians smuggle jewelry in
the casks of grapes they import.
Some have hidden diamonds in
demijohns Of liquor-paying duty on
that, but not on the stones. Others
have Struggled jewelry in loaves of bread,
pies, cakes, fruits. flowers, tobacco, in
every staple of the grocery in short. 1t
is quite a favorite method now to con.
ceal one dutiable article within another.
Sometimes people are willing to suf-
fer considerable bodily comfort, even
pain, for the sake of cheating the gov
eminent. One man, some years ago, i'm
bedded a valuable diamond in the flesh
Of his arm. He was closely examined,
and he complained of the boil with
which he was afflicted. 1t struck one of
the officers that the boil was a very pc
culiar one and adoctor was called. He
soon found the jewel in the
smuggler's arm. He must have
expended much thought, time
and patience to make the artificial
ailment with which he was afflicted.
"It is also reported that smugglers
have swallowed the jewels they tried to
conceal, but no one has INDUCED in that
sort of diet more than once as far as
known. It is not nutritious and does
not have a soothing effect on the nerves.
"No, the adage that the opportunity
- IL - /
founded in this matter of smuggling dia.
monds. It can be easily done, and
innumerable persons make themselves
criminals thereby, while in regard to
more bulky goods that cannot be con-
cealed SO well they affect scrupulous
honesty. "-[New York Commercial.
Garments 400 B. @.